The Hottest Ticket in Town (11 page)

17

L
ACI
STRETCHED
AND
YAWNED
as the early-morning light filled the bedroom with warmth, and she sighed at the immediate bliss that filled her heart. Oh, the simple things... But just as her feet touched the hardwood floor, she heard a commotion out front and pulled on the first thing she could grab to go and investigate.

Of all the people she never expected to see...her manager was standing on the front porch, arguing with Kane something fierce and, by the look on Kane's face, Trent was dangerously close to flying head over keister off the porch. She flew down the stairs and edged her way past Kane to try to smooth things over before they escalated. “Trent, what are you doing here?” she exclaimed, placing a calming hand on Kane. “How'd you find me?”

“This is your manager?” Kane asked, his lip curling.

“Yes, I'm her manager and just who are you?”

Laci cut in before Kane could answer because she wasn't ready to put labels on what they'd shared. “Don't worry about him, Trent. What the Sam Hill are you doing here?”

“The bigger question is...what the hell are you doing playing country bumpkin when you've got a sold-out tour to finish, girlie?”

“Hey, don't talk to her like that,” Kane interjected with a growl. “She's a grown woman and, technically, your boss, so a little respect is in order.”

Trent's gaze narrowed and although he was shorter than Kane and definitely not quite as built, he didn't back down for a second, in fact going toe-to-toe with Kane as if he could take him. “I'm sorry, I seemed to have missed the connection... Just exactly who the hell are you? Because I've been managing this
woman
's career for the past eight years and I've made her a superstar. In those eight years I've taken a country girl and turned her into a household name, what have you done for her?”

“You've run her into the ground for your own gain,” Kane said, glaring hard enough to burn a hole through Trent's shirt. “That's what you've done for her. She had to run away from you just to get some rest.”

Trent cut a mildly mocking glance at Laci as he said, “And that's what you've been doing here? Resting? Seems to me someone's forgotten how to tell the truth. I ain't dumb. I know what y'all been up to and that's fine by me, but there's work to be done. Ya hear? Work. That's what pays the bills and puts food on the table for your hardworking crew, like your friends Audrey and Simone. Remember them? Yeah, they been worried sick over you. How's that make you feel to know that while you've been gallivanting around, your friends have been twisted up with worry, thinking something terrible happened. Hell, it was all I could do to keep Simone from calling the authorities and putting out one of those alerts.”

Laci's heart stopped and she felt like a toad for worrying her friends. She should've at least called Simone and Audrey to let them know that she was fine, but she'd needed a few days, or a week or two... Hell, she might've taken a whole month if Trent hadn't shown up, but reality was definitely pushing its way into her fantasy and it was time to pay the piper. “I'll go pack my things,” she murmured unhappily.

Kane stopped her with a questioning look, but she couldn't leave the people who depended on her in the lurch. It just wasn't right and it wasn't how she was raised. Surely Kane could understand that, if nothing else. “It's just what I have to do.”

“Bullshit,” he disagreed hotly, shooting Trent a dark look. “This is on you. You've been pushing her too hard and now you're guilting her into coming back with you. If I hadn't promised I would keep my hands to myself, you'd be eating my fist for breakfast.”

“Well, thank goodness for small favors,” Trent drawled, then gestured to Laci, saying, “C'mon, girl, we got a plane to catch and a concert to put on. The public awaits.”

“Laci...” Kane called after her, but she was already on the move. Her mind was racing and her heart was thumping in time with her guilty conscience. What had she been thinking to run off like that? It'd been the most irresponsible thing she'd ever done and she was embarrassed to have fallen apart so completely.

As she was throwing the scant amount of clothes she'd brought with her into her bag, Kane appeared in the doorway looking ready to break something. “You're seriously going to leave just like that? He snaps his fingers and you say how high? What the hell, Laci. He's not your daddy, he's your manager and he doesn't have the right to order you around like that.”

“Kane, please. You don't understand. Trent Blackstone's been really good to me and I was terrible to run away without a word. I mean, I can't excuse my behavior. It was just plain rude and irresponsible considering how much I owe Trent.”

“Did he do all this out of the goodness of his heart?” Kane asked, surprising her with the odd question.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, did he catapult you into superstardom by the goodness of his heart? In other words...did you pay him to do a job?”

“Well, of course I paid him,” she said, frowning. “What kind of question is that?”

“One that makes my point. He's not your friend or anything like that. He's getting paid pretty good to manage your life, but he's not the king...he's just a manager. You don't have to run off just because he said so.”

“But the tour—”

“He could reschedule every single date if he had to. I know he could because I've seen it happen. He's pushing you hard because every sold-out venue is more money in his pocket. To be honest, I question the integrity of a man who would abuse his client like that.”

“I'm not being abused,” she said in a low tone. “And I don't appreciate what you're saying to me right now. You don't understand how the music business works, so don't try to insert your opinion where it's not wanted.”

He laughed and she drew back in stung silence. “What's so funny?”

“Not funny so much as tragic. I'm the one concerned for your welfare and yet my opinion means nothing. The man tapping his toe and glancing at his watch is the man who is going to put you in the ground and probably find a way to make a buck off your funeral and yet, you're planning to leave with him. Unreal.”

“You were right. This is why we would never work out, Kane,” she said, fighting tears as she jerked her suitcase to the floor. “You automatically reject anything you don't agree with and then everyone else is the jerk. You don't understand my obligations and I don't have the time to try to explain them to you every time we disagree on this topic.”

“This is damn ridiculous,” he nearly shouted, clearly frustrated with her. “Don't go with that son of a bitch, please. Let's just talk this out. I can drive you to the airport later if that's what you need to do, but don't leave right now. Not like this.”

“That would only delay the inevitable, Kane. You and I both knew this was coming. Please don't make it worse. Please tell Cora and Warren I love them.”

“Tell them yourself. Or wait, there's no time on the tour for them, is there? Only for the legion of fans out there who want to own a lock of your hair or your dirty underpants that they bought off eBay for a couple hundred bucks.”

“That's disgusting,” she exclaimed, unable to believe Kane was sinking so low. “And we're done. Goodbye, Kane.”

“Fine. Go. You're so damn stubborn you wouldn't admit the sky is blue even if blue was the only color in the rainbow. Have a nice life, Laci.”

She climbed into the rented car and Trent wasted no time in leaving Kane and the Bradford ranch behind in a puff of dust.

For Laci, it felt as if she were leaving behind her heart.

* * *

K
ANE
KICKED
A
rock from the porch and watched it sail across the yard to land in the grass with a muffled thud. She actually left with that man. He still couldn't believe it. And that panicked look on her face was more than he could stomach, which was crazy because she didn't want his concern. Trent—that was his name, right?—yeah, he just stood there, looking smug because he'd known that it didn't matter how much Kane blustered and threatened, she was going to leave with him. What kind of power did he have over Laci? Didn't seem right in the least. He went back into the house and immediately called Rian.

“Ri, I need you to do something for me,” he said, going straight to the point.

“Hello to you, too. What's going on? Everything okay at the ranch?”

“Ranch is fine. It's Laci I'm worried about. She just left with her sleazy manager and I don't trust him farther than I can throw him. Can you run a background check?”

“Sure. What's his name?”

“Trent Blackstone.”

“Got a DOB?”

“No. That's all I got. I can describe the asshole to you in case you need a visual.”

“It's not ideal but sure, go for it.”

“A little shorter than me, probably five foot eleven inches, slightly graying hair, looks to be in good shape for his age. Slightly pocked skin, as if he had a bad go of it when he was a kid.”

“All right. What happened? You and Laci get into a fight or something?”

“No, everything was fine until he showed his ugly mug and it was like her whole world just imploded and she had to leave. I could tell she didn't want to go, but it seemed she had no choice in the matter.”

“You think he's coercing her somehow?”

He shook his head, frustrated. “No, not exactly. Just pressured. He started spouting off about responsibility and whatnot and she caved like a wet napkin stretched over a glass, but she wasn't ready to go back. In fact, I was trying to get her to see that she was being run into the ground by this guy right when he showed up.”

“How'd he know where to find her? She call him?”

“No. Her cell's been turned off the whole time. I never saw her once on the phone to anyone. I got the impression she didn't want anyone finding her just yet because she wasn't ready.”

“Hold on, let me check something.” There was a pause and then Rian returned, saying, “He may have just checked TMZ. There's a picture of you and her at the festival.”

“Damn vultures. I knew going to that festival would bite us in the ass. I warned her that it wasn't a good idea but she had to have a candied apple.”

“Yeah, well, hopefully that apple was worth it. Now, there's all sorts of speculation about who Laci's ‘mystery man' is. I'm surprised reporters haven't been banging down the door already.”

“They can go ahead and try. Shotgun still works as an effective no-trespassing message.”

“Don't go shooting people,” Rian grumbled. “That's all we need.”

“Don't worry about me—you just see what you can dig up on that loser manager of hers.”

“Well, are you sure you want to put your nose in her business? Might not go over very well. Laci's a strong woman. I doubt this guy is pushing her around.”

“You didn't see her around him,” Kane grumbled, still a little baffled by what he'd just witnessed. “I don't know, maybe you're right. She's gonna be pissed as hell if I poke around in her business, but something doesn't sit right and I can't just let it slide because I might get yelled at.”

“All right, you're the boss. I'll poke around and see what pops out.” Rian paused a beat, then said, “So, I take it hanging out with Laci...it's been good?”

“Yeah, it's been pretty good. I mean, we've had our moments, but—” Kane stopped, flustered, not quite sure how to talk about his feelings for Laci. Not even with his own brother because he wasn't sure of his own mind and heart. Well, that wasn't entirely accurate. His heart and mind were at opposite sides of the situation, both urging him to do completely divergent things. His heart wanted Laci. Had never stopped wanting Laci. But his mind freaked the hell out at the very idea because it was a doomed love affair from the start. Only a glutton for punishment would chase after something that they knew wasn't going anywhere. He scrubbed at his head with his free hand, agitated, and finally said, “Listen, I just want to make sure she's safe. After that...I don't have any answers.”

“You don't have to have all the answers all the time,” Rian said, surprising him. “Look, it's your business, but maybe it's time to admit that Laci is still under your skin and it's time to figure out what that means.”

“It means there's no room in her life for me,” he barked, ready for Rian to just do as he asked and stop playing armchair shrink. “Call me when you've got something.”

Rian barked back, “Fine, you pigheaded fool. I'll call. In the meantime, try to do some soul-searching to rattle that pea brain of yours.”

Fabulous. Love advice from his little brother—a man who was so gun-shy about commitment, he'd never kept a girlfriend longer than six months—yeah, that was rich.

He hung up, and because he couldn't sit around all day waiting for the phone to ring, went back outside to do some repairs on the fence line. At least if his hands were occupied, his brain would settle down for just a minute.

Or at least, he hoped.

* * *

“D
ID
YOU
ENJOY
your little impromptu freak-out?” Trent asked with a subtle curl of scorn in his tone that caused Laci to frown. They were settled into the plane, getting ready for takeoff and now Trent was feeling chatty apparently. “I had to call in a few favors to find you in that Podunk town. Who's ever heard of Woodsville, Kentucky? I'm surprised it's even on a map. Thank goodness for GPS on a cell phone.”

Laci remained silent, choosing instead to gaze out the window. Everything felt wrong. Maybe she shouldn't have let Trent panic her like that. She could still see Kane's expression of shock when she chose Trent over him, but honestly, it wasn't her choosing Trent over Kane, it was all the people who depended on her for their livelihood that propelled her to action. She couldn't let them down. “I'm sorry. I was going to call,” she murmured, leaning against the window frame, trailing her finger against the hard plastic shutter. “I just wanted a few days of peace and quiet. I didn't mean to worry anyone.”